Landmark former water filter station near Ilkley goes on sale for £1.9 million

A FORMER Yorkshire Water filter station that was rescued from disrepair and transformed into a luxury family home has gone on sale for £1.9 million.

The house, nestling high above the moors at Burley Woodhead, was a ramshackle shell when Justin and Laura Whitson fell in love with it. They spent six years turning it into their dream property, complete with cinema, sauna and and Mediterranean-inspired terraces. It is now on the market for the first time as the couple prepare to move abroad.

"The home opens a unique window on Yorkshire’s world and offers one of the most breathtaking views of the county’s best countryside," said technology entrepreneur Justin. "You can watch the sun rise and set from the same chair – following its whole path during the day.

"We dreamed this property – and thankfully have been lucky enough to have lived that dream,” Bringing it to life from the empty shell we inherited was a labour of love.

"Another chapter in our lives now beckons and we feel the time is right to say goodbye to this home and its lifestyle-led design, and take on another similar challenge."

The heart of the property is naturally framed on three sides by floor-to-ceiling glass windows and sliding doors, with its kitchen and dining and living area leading to a two-tier terrace with hot tub.

Its 180-degree, uninterrupted panorama stretches as far as the eye can see, taking in landscapes as far away as Bradford, Leeds and Almscliffe Crag, near Harrogate.

The Whitstons’ project, however, did not get off to a dream start. Within months of the original conversion work being launched, the building – which dates to 1861 and was known locally as the Water Board House – was battered by 70mph gales in the storms of April 2011 while being underpinned, and toppled to the ground.

It was a case of going back to the drawing board – quite literally – for the family who, undeterred, revised their plans for the site and started again.

The property is now being marketed through the Ilkley office of Linley and Simpson, whose Head of Residential Sales Mark Christopher said: "One of the first and most important things that buyers tell us they look for in a new home is the view.

"This family home lays claim to having one of the most stunning and scenic views in Yorkshire. And it boasts a design and architectural flair to match."

Ipsoregulated

This website and associated newspapers adhere to the Independent Press Standards Organisation's Editors' Code of Practice. If you have a complaint about the editorial content which relates to inaccuracy or intrusion, then please contact the editor here. If you are dissatisfied with the response provided you can contact IPSO here